There were quite a few good things going on in this book, so I am going to start with those.
- Maeve's anxiety, especially her intrusive thoughts, were so eerily accurate that I had to actually put the book down a few times. She was scared of so many things, but especially death, and since I have the same panic and anxiety surrounding death, I related to her so much. At one point, she starts researching things that could go wrong with her stepmother's pregnancy, and I had done this with my own pregnancies. Her anxiety mirrored my own so much that it was hard to read. But important, too.
- I loved Maeve's stepmother and half brothers so much. In so many books, the stepmom is the villain, but in this one, she's the damn hero. There were a few times where Claire's decisions weren't the best, but she is only human too of course and had a lot to deal with. Maeve's relationships with them was hands down one of the best parts of the book.
- I enjoyed Maeve's relationship with Salix. This wasn't a coming out book, Maeve was already out to her family, and she and Salix kept running into each other. It was really sweet, if a bit convenient. I liked that Maeve didn't just immediately be "cured" because she wanted to be with Salix; she ends up nearly messing things up a lot, which I think is quite an accurate portrayal. I do wish I had connected with Salix a bit more, but I suppose it was really Maeve's story.
What I did not love as much:
- Maeve's biological parents were absolute disasters. So Maeve's mom had seemed okay. They had a really close relationship, and I was all for that. But then she was going to head off to Haiti with some old guy she barely knew? While Maeve was not doing well at all? And send her to live with her alcoholic/drug addicted dad and pregnant stepmom? What? Who does that? The dad was such a jerk. I get that he had demons of his own, but wow, he was awful. I have at least ten sticky flags that say nothing but "ASSHOLE" on them, in relation to Maeve's dad. Not only is he 100% NOT there for Maeve, he also straight up neglects his pregnant wife and twin six year old sons.
- Speaking of awful parental decisions, Mom and Dad of the Year wouldn't let Maeve take any kind of prescription medication for her anxiety. There was no real reason given for this, other than ignorance. The worst part in my opinion was that this was never fully fleshed out. It could have been used as a learning tool (i.e., Mom and Dad talked to a doctor who explained why medication can help in these situations) and turned into a positive, but instead it was just brushed off. Like Maeve was just some whiny kid who wanted meds, but in truth, she absolutely could have benefited from them, or at the very least, a discussion about them with someone with a medical degree.
- While I don't think Maeve's relationship with Salix was a complete instance of the "savior" thing, Maeve did seem to dare to do many more things with Salix than she would have before. And considering the pressure she was under with her parents, being there for Claire and the boys, and starting a relationship that she was nervous about, this response just didn't seem... authentic.
Bottom Line: This book did have a pretty decent representation of Maeve's anxiety, and I loved that Maeve had some good supports. There were a few things that could have been fleshed out a bit more to make it a stronger message overall.